Lake Norman

I wanted to thank The Lake Norman Area for all time and business that I gained. It is one of the best places I have ever lived and I am sure I will return.

Facebook Hijacking???

(CNN) -- Hundreds of Facebook groups have been hijacked in recent days by users pointing out what they say is a weakness in how the social-networking site handles the administration of its groups.
By Tuesday morning, 286 groups had apparently been renamed Control Your Info and had a new message posted to their walls.
"Hello, we hereby announce that we have officially hijacked your Facebook group," the message reads. "This means we control a certain part of the information about you on Facebook. If we wanted we could make you appear in a bad way which could damage your image severly [sic]."
According to Control Your Info, when Facebook group administrators step down, anyone else can take over their duties -- giving them access to members' personal information, the ability to send messages to all members of the group and the authority to make changes to that group.
"For example we could rename your group and call it something very inappropriate and nasty like 'I Support Pedophiles' Rights,' " the message continued. "But have no fear. We won't."
Among the groups renamed "Control Your Info" on Tuesday were a "Twilight" fan group, supporters of a high school football team and patrons of a Virginia winery.
Facebook did not immediately respond to an interview request for this report.
The names of two Facebook users who have posted Control Your Info messages after group takeovers -- Janis Roukkos and Bella Roregit -- did not appear to have active Facebook accounts by mid-morning Tuesday.
A message on Control Your Info's Web site blamed Facebook for shutting down the group's fan page. Members of the group could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
The group, which offered only a YouTube account as contact information, disagreed with calling what it had done "hacking."
"This isn't some kind of scare tactics, nor is it a hack, it's a feature that can be used, and is being used, in bad ways," the post reads. "Remember, control your info! Also, this project is strictly not for profit and done for a good cause."
The group's site contains pages of tips on protecting social-network users' private information.
Not all members of the groups that were hijacked were taking the stunt in the spirit it was apparently intended.
"It's pretty inappropriate and [expletive] you hijacked a facebook group for Palestinian rights to selfishly promote your little conspiracy theory page," one user wrote. "I reported this to facebook and others should too."

From the Top

Senators agree to extend home buyer tax credit

*****By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER (AP) – WASHINGTON — Senators agreed Wednesday to extend a popular tax credit for first-time homebuyers and to offer a reduced credit to some repeat buyers.The tax credit provides up to $8,000 to first-time homebuyers but is set to expire at the end of November. The Commerce Department said Wednesday that new homes sales fell 3.6 percent in September, and some industry representatives blamed uncertainty about the tax credit.Senators agreed to extend the existing tax credit for first-time homebuyers while offering a reduced credit of up to $6,500 to repeat buyers who have owned their current homes for at least five years, said Regan Lachapelle, a spokeswoman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.The tax credits would be available to homebuyers who sign sales agreements by the end of April. They would have until the end of June to close on their new homes, according to a summary of the legislation being circulated among lawmakers.Senators were still negotiating the expansion of a separate tax credit that lets money-losing businesses get refunds for taxes paid in previous years, providing them with an immediate source of cash.Senators in both political parties were hoping to add both tax provisions to a bill that would give people running out of unemployment insurance benefits up to 20 more weeks of federal aid. The Senate could vote on the overall bill as early as Thursday, but lawmakers were still haggling over several unrelated amendments Wednesday evening.Popular bills like the one to extend unemployment benefits often attract amendments that would have a difficult time passing on their own.Republicans were demanding that they be given a chance to offer amendments to restrict federal aid to the beleaguered community activist group ACORN and on requiring that people receiving unemployment insurance be processed through E-Verify, an Internet-based system that employers use to check on the immigration status of new hires.Majority Democrats have refused to add the amendments.If the Senate passes the bill, it would go to the House, which passed a similar bill extending unemployment benefits last month. House leaders have also said they support extending the tax credit for homebuyers.Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., has been negotiating for several weeks with Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., to craft an extended tax credit for homebuyers that would pass the Senate.Lawmakers didn't release a cost estimate for extending the tax credit, though similar proposals were projected to cost about $10 billion.Industry representatives said uncertainty about the tax credit is hurting new home sales. September's decline was the first since March.It takes 45 days to 60 days to close on a house, making it unlikely a sale made today would be consummated by the end of November, said Lucien Salvant, spokesman for the National Association of Realtors."Buyers right now have an incentive to hold off, not knowing whether the credit will be extended," Salvant said.About 1.4 million first-time homebuyers have qualified for the credit through August. The National Association of Realtors estimates that 350,000 of them would not have purchased their homes without the credit.The tax credit for money-losing businesses is a favorite among Republican lawmakers. Businesses could get tax refunds by using losses from 2008 and 2009 to offset taxable profits made in the previous five years. Under current law, they can only offset profits from the previous two years.The provision would help a variety of industries, including retailers, manufacturers and home builders, though it's expensive."It's clearly a way to put cash in the hands of some major economic players," said Clint Stretch, a tax policy expert at Deloitte Tax.A similar proposal that was ultimately dropped from the economic stimulus package enacted in February would have cost nearly $20 billion over 10 years. Lawmakers are working to reduce the price tag."Because everybody is so cash strapped, this is a good way to get refund when businesses need it for operating expenses," said Rachelle Bernstein, vice president and tax counsel for the National Retail Federation.

Not a Greenthumb...Me either...

Not all of us went to 4H or horticultural school for our degree. But I am quite sure that anyone can agree, entering a home or business that has plants definitely has a more homey and distinctive feeling...so...I though you may like this. http://lifehacker.com/5357488/five-hard+to+kill-houseplants-for-your-home-or-workspace?skyline=true&s=i

Matt

Mortgages'

Dear Valued Realtor,

5.375%, 30 year fixed, 30 day lock, 5.625% APR Conforming

5.375%, 30 year fixed, 30 day lock, 5.625% APR FHA

5.5%, 30 year fixed, 30 day lock, 5.75% APR USDA

Quote: You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today

Best regards,

John Noto

Creative Financial Services of NC, LLC

948 N Main St, suite 2

Mooresville, NC 28115

Office: 704-663-1302

Fax: 704-746-3179

Cell: 704-746-4971

Mortgage News

From Andrea Kindley:

Market Comment - Week of August 31st, 2009

Mortgage bond prices fell last week pushing mortgage interest rates higher. The gains we had mid week were basically erased as stocks remained strong. The DOW rose despite continued signs the labor market remained weak. Fortunately there were news reports indicating the Fed may continue the purchase of mortgage bonds into 2010 in an effort to keep rates relatively low. The last thing the Fed and the housing sector need are higher rates. The Fed continued to purchase billions of dollars worth of mortgage-backed securities but even with that rates remained volatile. For the week interest rates rose about 1/4 of a discount point.

The employment report Friday will be the most important data this week. ISM Index data and revised productivity data may also move the market. Continued stock strength may also pressure rates.

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Economic Factors
Economic Indicator	Release Date Time	Consensus Estimate	Analysis
Construction Spending	Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2009	Down 0.2%	Low importance. An indication of economic strength. Significant weakness may lead to lower rates.
ISM Index	Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2009	50.2	Important. A measure of manufacturer sentiment. A larger decline may lead to lower mortgage rates.
ADP Employment	Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2009	-246k	Important. An indication of employment. A larger decrease in payrolls may bring lower rates.
Revised Q2 Productivity	Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2009	Up 6.1%	Important. A measure of output per hour. Improvement may lead to lower mortgage rates.
Factory Orders	Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2009	Up 1.5%	Important. A measure of manufacturing sector strength. Weakness may lead to lower rates.
Fed Minutes	Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2009	None	Important. Details of the last Fed meeting will be thoroughly analyzed.
Employment	Friday, Sept. 4, 2009	9.5%, -225k	Very important. An increase in unemployment or a large decrease in payrolls may bring lower rates.

Recent Volatility

The recent volatility in mortgage interest rates on a daily basis has been escalated by the increased Fed purchasing of mortgage bonds in an effort to combat rising mortgage rates along with uncertainty about how it all unwinds. The Fed's goal of keeping mortgage interest rates relatively low in an effort to help the ailing housing sector of the economy has been a challenge. Analysts called the recent ramp up in purchasing "surprising" as amounts have exceeded recent averages. The Fed purchased almost $800 billion of mortgage bonds so far this year and has stated a goal of spending $1.25 trillion on the program by the end of the year.

Different Fed officials have come out recently with what could be interpreted as conflicting positions on the program. Richmond Fed President Lacker told reporters recently, "Whether there is a so-called cliff effect or any disruption due to discontinuous change in our purchases is up in the air." Lacker also indicated, "I will be evaluating carefully whether we need or want the additional stimulus that purchasing the full amount authorized under our agency mortgage-backed securities purchase program would provide." On a slightly different note Atlanta Fed President Lockhart indicated the Fed would probably extend the timeframe of MBS purchases beyond the end of the year. The remarks now leave many questions. Will the Fed spend all of the slated money? Will the purchases take place before the end of the year or will they extend into 2010? With so much uncertainty, even among Fed officials, mortgage interest rate volatility is likely. The good news is rates still remain historically favorable.

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HEAT

Wow...From New Jersey right down to North Carolina...98 degrees and 95% humidity...the trees are now shaking in the wind...storm...your more than welcome!!